11 Jul '13

A Nix Review – Chains and Canes by Katie Porter (5 Stars)

Wealthy businessman Daniel Baker doesn’t have a creative bone in his body, but he knows art and craves beauty. Contemporary dancer Naya Ortiz, his fiancée of three years, embodies both. His protective commitment to her happiness extends to hiring Dominas to satisfy the sexual masochism she craves.

The balance of their relationship is tipped when Naya dances with reckless Cajun choreographer Remy Lomand. His magnetism as a Dom carries over to a backstage encounter that leaves Naya breathless—and Daniel unable to look away.

Remy knows the deal. The fancy people want to play with a disposable boy toy. He’s fine with that…but not with letting Daniel remain a bystander. As their sessions intensify, Remy guides Daniel’s awakening as a sexual submissive. Their no-strings threesome reveals the physical connection Daniel and Naya have lacked—and the emotional depth Remy fears.

When Remy and Naya tirelessly work to found a professional dance company, Daniel is left on the outside looking in. And although he and Naya are ready to submit to Remy for the rest of their lives, the man they call Sir may not want their love at all.

FTC Disclaimer : This review was requested by the publicist. I have reviewed many of the authors work and consider myself a fan. The author has also participated in many events on the blog. I have not been paid for the review nor was I coerced into giving it a positive review. I actually just enjoyed it.

This is one of the most messed up ménages that I have ever read and the set up made me feel a little uneasy. Daniel and Naya are in a committed relationship. They are engaged to be married and everything seems perfect but, of course, it is not. Naya is a hardcore masochist and Daniel is no sadist. They have been paying Dominatrix to come to their home and see to her needs. It temporarily fills the void and they think that everything is hunky-dory. That is, until they meet Remy.

This is not a tale of spanking and restraints. This is a story of sexual submission, hard-core sadism and three people finding their missing parts. It isn’t for the faint of heart and pushed more than one of my limited buttons; I just love a book that challenges my black and white view of the word.

Daniel and Naya worried me. Filling the missing bits of their relationship with paid service Tops was not the way to start a marriage but it was clear that what they had was love. It was refreshing that they could speak to each other freely about their feelings and that they were willing to put that much work into their relationship. I worried that Remy would screw that up but he truly didn’t. He did threaten the fabric of their relationship though as he showed them that what they were doing was simply not enough.

Remy was so destructive that I was torn between wanting him away from Daniel and wanting him healed. He had a truly awful upbringing and that affected the way that he saw himself. He only thought he was good enough to be a part time player in their relationship, but he wanted so much more. I both love and pitied him. I loved the way he was when he was with them, the amazing Dom who could give the Naya the pain she needed whilst freeing Daniel’s submissive side. I loved that he had the ability to learn and adapt, that he so was so upset when he hurt them too much and that he tried even harder to be what they needed. I pitied the way he hated himself so much, he couldn’t even let himself stay the night after even the most emotive scene. He was the main player in this book for me and I adored him. I didn’t know if he could be a long term part of a ménage though; he judged himself too harshly and I didn’t know if he had it in him to invest that kind of emotion into other people willingly.

Daniel broke my heart all over again. He didn’t even know that he was submissive and was well and truly suppressing his bisexual side. It didn’t surprise me that the submissive in him had quelled every part of himself apart from the side that is what she needed, but in doing so he had cut off a part that was intrinsic to who he was. I loved that he wanted to worship them, that he would throw everything at making them happy because it made him happy, but in another way it made me sad as they couldn’t see his actions for what they truly were. I loved him with Remy, loved how happy he was. I knew his priority was Naya though, and I knew that that could spell the end of their little tryst.

Naya was the least vivid character in this book. She had her roll to play, and I adored how she was when she was in the scenes with the boys but, unlike them, I couldn’t see much of her character when she was alone. It was her needs that set up this unhappy little pyramid but it was also her needs that could drive them apart. She was vital but I just couldn’t see her roll in anything other than the ménage.

The sex between them was intense, emotional and so hot I had to put it down a couple of times to calm the heck down. The intense look at pain and submission should have been difficult to read but the contentment that it brought each character was hard to deny. I have to applaud the writing of the authors in this book; they made a difficult topic very easy to relate to and enjoy.

So this is a bit of a squeeing review but it deserves it; I haven’t read a book so captivating in quite a while. It challenged me in ways I can’t explain and I truly recommend it to everyone. If you like angsty, sexy BDSM ménages, pick this one up immediately.